Heroes: Is Tonight’s Episode the Season or Series Finale?

Published: February 8, 2010

Tonight, NBC concludes the fourth season of NBC’s Heroes (preview footage below). The series was a breakout hit for the network a few years back but has severely dwindled in the ratings. Will it be cancelled and will fans be left hanging?

Heroes follows the lives of a group of ordinary people who discover that they have special powers and the ways that it affects their lives. The current season’s cast includes Adrian Pasdar, Ali Larter, Cristine Rose, Greg Grunberg, Hayden Panettiere, Jack Coleman, James Kyson Lee, Masi Oka, Milo Ventimiglia, Robert Knepper, Sendhil Ramamurthy, and Zachary Quinto.

Though this season’s viewership was far below what it once was, Heroes looked to be safe from cancellation late last year. The numbers weren’t good but, thankfully for fans, most of the rest of the network’s schedule was doing worse, particularly in the all-important 18-49 demographic.

Unfortunately, Heroes’ ratings have continued to decline. In recent weeks, the 18-49 demos have fallen to new lows. The worst was a 1.8/5 rating/share. That’s a terrible performance, even by current NBC standards.

Will Heroes get a proper ending?

Ultimately, the NBC execs will have to decide whether to renew, based on the show’s earlier performance, or cancel, based on the most recent ratings. It doesn’t help Heroes’ chances for survival that the peacock network is looking at as many as 18 new shows to help fill their 2010-11 schedule.

As expected, tonight’s episode of Heroes will end on a cliffhanger. Coleman recently told EOnline, “This season finale sort of breaks things open to, like a Brave New World. It feels like a season finale. I think the show deserves a series finale, even if it were a two-hour movie movie-of-the-week. Something, just something. I think that it should be wrapped up. Because when you have a series like ours, with all ‘middles,’ I think it deserves an end.”

If the show is cancelled, don’t look for the resolution to come in the near future. When asked about the possibility of filming a contingency ending, Anglea Bromstad, NBC’s president of primetime, told reporters in January that production had already finished for the season.

5. Sylar kills Parkman, absorbs his power. Then remembers how to be a human bomb, and “convinces” ando to help him. Then destroys the world, which turns out to be a parallel world which looks just like ours. Flash to our world, Gabriel and Claire are married and live happily ever after.

6. Parkman brainwashes every TV viewer into thinking that there was never a Heroes TV series, and all the time we were just watching Fantasy Island reruns (which would probably get better ratings at this point).

7. A school for “specials” is built by a guy in a wheel chair to teach them how to control their powers and live with humanity and all live happily ever after, until a magnet loving bad guy appears. The series is then made into a movie…or was it the other way around?

8. All specials get into a plane and crash land into a mysterious island that appears in no map. They all loose powers and are attacked by a mysterious smoke like creature, and they are never seen again.

9. Hiro takes all specials to the future, where everybody is a special hero so they blend in nicely and live happily ever after.

10. The specials find out that their powers come from meteorites from a planet called krypton. Then a new bald evil guy captures them all, except for one who likes to wear blue tights and a red cape. The bald guy removes all of their powers by using a meteorite neutralizer, but in the end gets beaten by the guy in the red cape, who then becomes a legend and gets his own series (which surprisingly runs out of topics by the 4th season, and still lasts for many more seasons despite poor ratings).

11. A couple of rogue FBI agents find out that the specials are really space alien experiments, covered up by a higher power in the government (a guy to loves smoking). They go public with the news, so the specials have no other choice but to run to a mountain in the artic where a spaceship takes them back home.

12. Volume X: The final battle. Reptilians from outer space disguised as humans invade earth. It is up to the heroes to join forces and fight the reptilians. They soon find out that bird crap kills the reptilians so they make bird crap guns. As a side effect, the stench from the bird crap also takes away the heroes powers permanently.

13. The heroes realize that they are living inside of a comic book driven by the reader’s imagination. When the reader realizes it, he says “how can this be possible”, panics, runs out to the street and gets hit by a car.

14. The heroes finally mature and realize that instead of fighting with each other they could be helping out in Haiti or searching for Bin Laden. In the end they each go their separate ways and become productive.

15. Hiro goes back to the past and teleports all NBC executives to another time in the distant future. The network then recruits young minds with fresh ideas and by this time becomes the #1 network, Heroes being the #1 show on TV (therefore no need for this post)

Well that was a short season. The show got so bloated and all over the place. Finally they reel it back in and now it might end. I think it should go one more season like on Lost know the end date and plan accordingly. Oh wait this is NBC, nevermind.

At least Zachary Quinto became the breakout star. Much to Hayden P’s dismay.

I disagree about them reeling it back in. How anyone could feel satisfied with this recent finale, much less any of them (even the magical first season’s finale, which is arguably the tipping point in terms of the show’s quality slide) is baffling, to say the least.

Too many people seem quick to lay blame on NBC, Tim Kring, Jeph Loeb or any other scapegoat to explain the reason behind how bad this show has become but never question whether it’s a collective effort toward the ball being dropped.

Honestly, pairing a show like this up against 24 in the spring season is the worst decision that NBC could have made. I purposely watched the season finale for the ratings, but 24 – for the most part – takes priority and that’s only because if you miss one episode you’re an hour behind while Heroes has enough hints that you can pick it up an episode or so late.

I Loved the show in the first season but as the seasons went on Heroes seemed to drift further and further from where it seemed like it should go. I know several people who don’t like it anymore simply because the plots and characters seem to spred out more and more as time goes on. There is too much going on and many people just can’t follow it. Sometime there are several episodes where you don’t ever see some of the characters.
I think simplifying the plots might attract more viewers but, alas it may be too late for that.
Also I have to agree with “Chance” and “Fix It”. The Syler character needs to go. I like the actor but the writer have run the character into the ground.
There are parts of the show I really like but, where is it going? Where are the “Heroes”?
It feels like it’s running semi blind with no direction.

I think it’s been going where it should go. I think Lost is the show that has too much going on and I can’t follow it. I like that sometimes I can’t see all the characters, I think MASH sometimes did that. I think simplifying the plots would be a mistake. Chance never said Sylar should go he/she was just inquiring how many times could he be killed and brought back. And I think Fix It was just implying that Sylar needs to be evil again. I feel now that Samuel has been arrested and distanced from the “specials” that it is only a matter of time until Sylar drops the “I am good” act. I see the Heroes all the time, although this last episode was too simple a rescue.

Hi Lori,
I like your feedback and passion for the show.
Just to clear things up though:
(Also I have to agree with “Chance” and “Fix It”.) AND (The Syler character needs to go.) Were two seperate comments or I would have put a comma between them instead of a period. My apologies to anyone else too if that was misleading or taken wrong.
It is MY opinion that Syler needs to either go or choose a side. While he does show a common conflict people have with choosing the feeling of good or the temptation of evil, I feel like it’s time for him to choose. I do like the character though.
If Heroes comes back next year I’ll likely watch it but if it gets canceled I won’t cry.

Lori,
Just to clarify… I have to say that Zachary Quinto is an awesome actor. He is perfect as Syler, as he was as Spock. My problem with the Syler character is how may times he’s been killed, and brought back to life. And how many times he’s gone back and forth from evil to good. It’s like the writers said, “hey lets stupefy the plot and see if any of our dumb viewers notice.” Good grief, pick a side and stick with it! Or kill him off permanently!
I agree with Demented. There are simply too many heroes, and to many changing plots. And heroes? Mostly I see messed up people trying to hide, and deny their powers, not heroes. Frankly the only hero is Hiro, (and possibly Peter)and he’s mostly inept at using his abilities. What happened to Claire’s ability to use her blood to heal people? And Peter’s ability to absorb any power and keep them? Then he can only swap and have one power at a time. Yet he absorbed Syler’s power, which is to keep all powers he absorbs… so he should be able to keep all the powers, like Syler does. Duh… The writers are just so inept at keeping the story line congruent, that it’s distracting. I find it as irritating as a six shot revolver firing thirty rounds without reloading!
And now, for a cliff hanger, Clare decides to out them… again… Sigh…
My primary complain, among the many, is that there are a lot of Hero’s with potential, and they just keep killing Syler and changing his moral orientation, instead of developing other Heroes. Get a clue writers.
My only consolation is that NBC is so inept, they’ll probably go extinct before I have to decide whether I’ll watch a new season of Heroes… heavy sigh…

@Chance, I didn’t need you to clarify your statements for it was Demented’s that I had misunderstood. I disagree, there aren’t too many heroes. After reading the wikipedia entry on his character I would say he’s been killed twice. I do agree he has gone back and forth between good and evil many many times and should choose. Also read a wikipedia entry on Claire Bennet and I see nothing about using her blood to heal, I have heard many people use it as a suggestion to help someone occasionally on the show. Peter absorbs an ability then loses it the minute he acquires another one, so of course he lost Sylar’s power even though that one lets him keep all powers he absorbs. I think the heroes have reached their potentials and only have farther to go. In the meantime rewatch the show. And with all their other programming I highly doubt NBC would be extinct as quickly as you say.

Lori,
Thanks for your comments. You force me to think and do more research, which I enjoy.
Actually, in season two Claire’s blood was used to heal Noah, after he was shot in the eye. Then in season three Claire was rushing to get her healing blood to Nathan after he was shot, when Syler caught her and took her power. Her blood was experimented with in that season and the conclusion was that her blood would heal anyone. So why has that ability been dropped and ignored since then?
Also, Peter’s original power was to absorb anyone’s power and keep it, just like Syler… but without the cutting drama. (Which Syler doesn’t need to do now either.) Then Peter’s father stole his power, and after that he could only absorb one power at a time. Following the writer’s logic; once he absorbed Syler’s power, which was to absorb anyone’s power and keep it, Peter should be able to absorb any power and keep it too. But alas, no….
I believe you’re right about Syler only dying twice, but he was also changed into Nathan, another sort of “death”. I think it’s lame to kill him off, then bring him back…period. Once perhaps, but as an ongoing theme? Give me a break. If I knew he might return from the dead, as all the heroes know, after I killed him I’d cut him up, burn the pieces, and scatter the ashes.
Do you see my problem with the writers? Keep on with your observations, you make reading these comments fun.

Hi Chance, I had forgot those moments. lol, not everything is covered by wikipedia. Maybe they haven’t forgotten it just no one has seriously needed the blood so far. I think that is because even though he absorbed Sylar’s power he still maintains his own power of absorbing one at a time, it makes no sense but I think that is what the writers are doing with Peter’s power. I never initially saw that as a death but now that you mention it it could be considered another death. As long as Sylar doesn’t keep dying and coming back as many times as Freddy and Jason have then I am fine with the writers, lol. But I do see your problem with them. Sorry if I was a bit of a bitch in my last reply. Thank you so much:)

I really hope it’s not cancelled. Sylar went from being the most incredible villain in ALL tv shows into the biggest joke (especially near the end of the finale – “I’m a hero”…….come on!!!!…..) That and so much more really needs to be resolved. At least they had Samuel to back up on as the villain, though his character really didn’t develop until over halfway through the season. I guess he would be kinda cool to see again, if he wasn’t confined to one location with everyone around him.
I agree – the series needs to have a true ending. Even just a 2-hour tv movie would be great.

I think now that Samuel has been arrested and all the “specials” are not around him anymore thus weakening him, that it’s only a matter of time until Sylar drops the “I am good” act and goes back to being the villian we know and love.

I think that heroes shouldn’t be cancelled because so many people are being lay off because of the ecomony and wouldn’t be an apporiate wrap up of the show and i am tired of networks puting on reality shows which its stupid if they cancelled this show i might be done with NBC

I liked the first season of Heroes, though it had a few problems. They tried to have too many story lines, and too many heroes at once, which gave the show a choppy confusing effect. But I hung in there, and mostly enjoyed the first season. Unfortunately they did it again in the following seasons. And really, how many time can they kill Syler and bring him back? After a while, I started yawning when he’d die, since they always bring him back. And is he good or evil? It would be nice if they’d make up their minds. I doubt if I’ll watch it again, if it returns for another season.

I hope NBC will not cancel Heroes. As I understand, NBC fired two of their best writers. WTH! Why would you do that. Get these people back to work and lets get the ratings up. If Heroes is canceled, I will not watch another show on NBC.

I would be so devastated if Heroes was not renewed for another season. I started watching Heroes this summer after getting the first three seasons on DVD and I am hooked. I haven’t missed a single episode this season and I can guarantee that if it’s brought back next fall I won’t miss any episodes. There are many fans like me who are in love with this show and we deserve at least a conclusion. NBC should make every effort to keep loyal viewers happy. I agree with Lori, if Heroes were to be canceled I would probably boycott all NBC shows, even though I am a huge fan of The Office, 30 Rock, and Parks and Recreation. I would give them all up if NBC canceled Heroes.

When I saw the conclusion to last night’s episode, I wondered if that was it for the series. It seemed like things weren’t wrapped up completely, but enough that the cliffhangers wouldn’t leave me feeling like there were massive unresolved issues (a la Bionic Woman). Still, if this WAS the ending, it ended on a whimper. But overall, it was an excellent season and, while I’ll miss it if it’s gone, I’m reasonably satisfied that the entire story might have been told.

I hope and pray every day that Heroes gets renewed for another Season. I would be very disappointed if it were canceled and would consider a boycott of all NBC shows and products advertised on NBC. If it were to be canceled I would hope that they would film something that would tie up the loose ends, because there is nothing more annoying than loving a show that gets canceled and wondering what if. Also, if it is canceled they better not fill it’s time slot with another shitty reality show.

I agree with Coleman; Heroes may not be doing so well right now but it deserves some kind of wrap up! Even just a TV movie to tie up the loose ends and tell us some things we’ve always wanted to know (like, are the specials really the product of genetic engineering or are they the next step in the evolutionary process? Or both?). It would also be cool to have a “flash forward” to about five years in the future and see how all these people end up!